News execs depart from BBC network

Tuesday

Nov 13, 2012 at 6:00 AM

By Alan Cowell and John F. Burns THE NEW YORK TIMES

The BBC struggled Monday to contain a spreading crisis over its reporting of a decades-old sexual abuse scandal as two senior executives withdrew temporarily from their jobs following the resignation of the corporation’s director-general, a move that encapsulated the worst setback to the public broadcaster’s status, prestige and self-confidence in years.

The BBC’s website said its director of news, Helen Boaden, and her deputy, Stephen Mitchell, had “stepped aside,” the latest moves since a flagship current affairs program, “Newsnight,” wrongly implicated a former Conservative Party politician in accusations of sexual abuse at a children’s home in North Wales in the 1970s and 1980s.

The BBC management said neither Boaden nor Mitchell “had anything at all to do with the failed ‘Newsnight’ investigation” of the politician, Alistair McAlpine. But it “believes there is a lack of clarity in the lines of command and control in BBC News” because of an inquiry into a separate “Newsnight” debacle — the cancellation of a program a year ago into allegations of sexual abuse by Jimmy Savile, a longtime BBC television host who died last year at age 84.

The BBC said the two executives would step aside until the end of that investigation, which is being conducted by Nick Pollard, a former head of the rival Sky News.

The BBC said its head of newsgathering, Fran Unsworth, and Ceri Thomas, the editor of the current affairs radio program “Today,” would fill in for the executives who stepped aside.

But furor continued to build on several fronts. On Monday, British lawmakers, politicians and newspapers focused on a decision by the BBC Trust to authorize a settlement payment to the former director-general, George Entwistle, equivalent to one year’s salary of about $750,000. The BBC justified the payment — double its contractual obligation of six months’ pay — by saying Entwistle would continue to help the inquiries into the scandals.

Entwistle was in charge of all the BBC’s television productions and was seeking to succeed Mark Thompson as director-general.

Thompson stepped down in September after accepting an offer to become president and chief executive of The New York Times Co., a post he took up Monday.

He has said that he knew nothing beforehand about the “Newsnight” investigation of Savile or the decision to scrap it, but that he is willing to answer any questions from investigators.

Tim Davie, 45, an executive with a background in marketing who is director of the BBC’s radio operations, will serve as the acting director-general.